Phonograph



Feb. 15, 1944. o. M. DUNNING PHONOGRAPH Filed Oct. 26, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet l 2?. www M? 3nnentor m 3 WM #6 o wm Feb. 15, 1944. 0. M. DUNNING PHONOGRAPH Filed Oct. 26, 1940 4 Shets-Sheet 3 3uvcutot Feb 15, W44. Q M. DUNNING PHONOGRAPH Filed Oct. 26, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Zhmentor lie M-pumzirgj u wNN IIIIIIIIII m Patented Feb. 15, 1944 2,341,703 PHONOGRAPH Orville M. Dunning, Glen Ridge, N. 3., assignor to Thomas A. Edison, Incorporated, West Orange, N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Application October 26, 1940, Serial No. 362,990

8 Claims.

This invention relates to phonographs and more particularly to commercial phonographs of the disk-record type.

In the more common or conventional arrange ment of the disk-record type of phonographic machine the record is rotated at constant angular speed and the engaging stylus of the translating means is moved across the record towards the center thereof at constant linear speed. The engaging stylus will under these conditions form or follow (depending upon Whether the machine is operated for recording or reproducing purposes) a spiral groove on the record face, but the linear speed of this groove past the stylus will gradually diminish as the stylus moves through succeeding groove convolutions towards the center of the record. This continuously varying groove speed produces a continuous variation in the recording and reproducing conditions between the translating means and the record, and introduces limitations in the quality which can be attained in the recording and reproducing operations. Also, since the minimum groove speed which may be utilized at the central portion of the record is necessarily limited by the standard or quality to be realized over this portion of the record, and since the speed of the groove at the outer portion of the record is much faster than is necessary to attain this standard, it follows that in this conventional type of machine the playing time of the record is unnecessarily greatly reduced.

To overcome the abovementioned limitations, disk-record type phonographs have been constructed to operate at a constant linear groove speed. This is achieved by progressively increasing the angular or rotational speed of the record, and concurrently effecting a relative translational movement between the translating means and the rotating record, along a stationary radial line of the latter, at a rate proportional to the record rotational speed. The varying rotational speed of the record has been effected by a frictional drive wherein a rotating drive wheel, which is held axially stationary in relation to the translating means, frictionally engages a disk connected to the record support and is fed radially thereacross. The relative translational movement between the rotating record and the translating means may be effected by holding either the record or the translating means stationary .1

and moving the other in translation relative thereto.

The present invention is concerned with a constant linear groove speed type of phonograph wherein the record is rotated by way of a frictional drive of the general form just mentioned and wherein the rotating record is moved in translation, or fed, with respect to a stationary translating means and it is a broad object of my invention to provide a generally improved form of such a phonograph and to simplify and facilitate its operation and control.

It is another object of my invention to provide new and improved protective means to safeguard the phonograph from misoperation, and particularly in this respect to enforce a correct sequence in the manipulations of separate controls of the phonograph.

Another object of my invention is to provide novel and improved means to facilitate the mounting and removal of a record in relation to the machine. To this end it'is a feature of my invention to provide a guideway for directing a record, which is to be mounted, to a substantially central position in relation to the record-support spindle and to provide readily manipulatable means by which the record may then be finally centered and retained in position on its support.

More particularly, it is an object of my invention to provide arecord support structure of lowinertia moment so as for example to reduce slippage in the friction drive when the clutch for the drive is engaged to start record rotation. To this end the usual heavy turntable is eliminated and the record is rotatably supported only at its hub portion, there being however provided a sta tionary table directly below the translating means which serves to slidably support the portion of the record engaged by the stylus. It will be seen that while the elimination of the usual turntable this respect, the drive disk is very simply mountedit being directly and rigidly connected at its hub to the record-support spindle-and is,

moved into and out of frictional engagement with the drive wheel merely by flexing it longitudinally of the spindle. 1

Other and allied objects and features of my invention lie in the various combinations of ele ments hereinafter described and will more fully appear from the following description and the appended claims.

the description of my invention, reference is had to the accompanying drawings, of which:

Figure l is a top plan view of a phonograph constructed in accordance with my invention, the top cabinet cover being removed and some cabinet portions being broken away for the better illustration of the interior parts of the phonograph mechanism;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially along the line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a left hand elevational view of the record-support carriage and of the parts carried thereby, some stationary parts of the machine appearing however in section along the line 3--3 of Figure l; I

Figure 4 is a fractional rearward View of the record-support carriage just mentioned;

Figure 5 is a vertical sectional View taken substantially along the line 5-5 of Figure 2;

Figure 5a is a fractional front elevational view, at reduced scale, of the phonograph;

Figure 5b is a right-hand elevational view of the structure of Figure 5a;

Figure 6 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially along the line 6-6 of Figure 2;

Figure 7 is a fractional view of the friction drive for the record support illustrating in particular the clutch for the drive;

Figure 8 is a top plan view of a portion of the structure of Figure '7; and

Figure 9 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially along the line 99 of Figure 3.

Reference being had to Figures 1 and 2, in particular, there will be seen a top plate -I of a frame 2 for the phonograph mechanism, which is carried by a lower rectangularly shaped cabinet portion 3 at the level of the top thereof, the plate being hinged to this cabinet portion along its rearward edge as at 4 and supported by this cabinet portion at its front in a manner hereinafter described. The frame 2, which may be a casting, is provided beneath the top plate I with left and right standards 5 and 6 and with a short intermediate standard I (see Figure 5). The left standard 5 extends from front to back along the width of the top plate and has a rearward portion terminating at its bottom in a horizontal face 5 and a forward portion projecting below the face 5 and of a substantially V shape;

the intermediate standard I is positioned in the rearward half of the frame and terminates in a lower face i which lies in the horizontal plane of the face 5 just mentioned; and the right standard i3 is of the same shape as that of the forward portion of the left standard 5 and is positioned laterally in line with this portion.

Secured by screws 8 to the faces 5 and l is a flat plate 9 from which a motor M is resiliently suspended as on posts Iil through compression springs II in the manner such for example as is described in Langley Patent No. 2,020,119, issued November 5, 1935, and entitled Motor supporting means. Carried by the left and right standards 5 and 6 in the forward half of the machine are front and back (and respectively upper and lower) laterally extending rods I2 and I3 on which a carriage M for the record-support structure is slidably mounted. The rod I3 is held stationary to the frame 2 by a set screw I5 in the standard 5; the rod I2 is, however, journalled in the standards 5 and G-for reasons which will hereinafter be apparentand held longitudinally stationary by a screw It in the standard 5 which engages an annular groove IT in the rod.

ihe carriage I6, which may also be a casting,

comprises a top horizontal portion I4a having left and right legs I lb and I40 depending therefrom, as shown in Figures 3, 5 and 6. The carriage is mounted on the front support rod !2 by way of a sleeve 2!] embracing the red, the sleeve being secured to the carriage by means of screws 2| passing through a flanged head 20' on one end of the sleeve and threading into a side wall of the carriage. The right leg I40 of the carriage is slotted as at 22 to fit the carriage support rod 13 and to slide directly thereon. The left leg Mb of the carriage is slotted as at 23 in the manner of the leg I40; this slot is however enlarged to receive a sleeve 24 which embraces the support rod IS. The sleeve 24 extends to the left of the carriage through substantially half the length of the machine and is threaded exteriorly along its outer end portion 210.; this sleeve which is adapted to serve as a feed screw for the carriageis mounted for rotation about the support rod i3 and for sliding movement thereaiong, and is held stationary against translational movement along the support rod in relation to the carriage by a stop collar 25 on the sleeve at the left side of the leg Mb and by the hub of a bevel gear 2% at the right side of the leg, the collar and gear being secured to the sleeve by set screws 21 and 28. Movement of the carriage on the support rods 12 and I3 in a rightward direction is limited by a stop collar 2'9 on the rod I3 which is secu'rable thereto at any desired point by a set screwsil.

Journalled in the upper carriage portion Ma intermediate the legs I db and Me is a vertical spindie 35 serving as a record-support shaft (see Figure 6). Secured t0 the upper portion of this spindle by a pin 36 is a sleeve 31 having upper and lower flanged ends 310 and 31b. Theupper flanged end 31a. serves as a rotatable support or turntable for a disk record, this support being however in size equal substantially only to that of the central inactive hub portion of -the record. The lower flanged end 31b is riveted at its underside to an annular ring 38. Clar'n'ped between this flanged end and ring is a thin drive disk 39 which forms a part of the frictional drive as is hereinafter explained. Between the ring 38 and the upper carriage portion Ida there are interposed ball bearings 40, which are guided in an annular recess 4! provided in a raised boss 41 on the carriage, to form a thrust bearing for the spindle 35. Secured to the lower end of the spindle 35 between the carriage legs Mb and H50 is a pinion 42 which is in mesh with the bevel gear 26 to couple the feed sleeve 24 to the spindle 35. This rotation of the sleeve with the spindle is employed to feed the record supporting carriage M in translation along the rods I2 and I3 at a rate proportional to the rotational speed of the record, as is hereinafter explained.

The record support 31a projects slightly above the top plate I through an opening 43 therein, which opening extends laterally of the machine so that the top plate will clear the record support in the travel of the carriage. ihe mounting of a record on the record support 31a is accomplished by sliding the record laterally across the top plate I from the right end of the machine into a position wherein the record is centrally located in relation to the spindle 35. To facilitate such placement of the record disk there is provided a guide plate 44 in parallel relation to the top plate I and at a small distance thereabove. This plate, which has front and back. turned-down edges 44. of which the latter have ears secured by screws 46 to the top plate I to hold the guide plate in position, forms with the top .plate I a shallow guideway 4! extending laterally of the machine across the record support 310. (see Figure 6). The guideway has at its right end a mouth 41 by way of which it is adapted to receive a disk record and to guide the same into a substantially correctly mounted position in relation to the record support 310.. Although the support 310.. projects into the guideway, it does not interfere with the passage of a record therethrough because of a bevel 46 provided on its edge. In order that a record disk may be easily inserted into the guideway, the mouth of the guideway is flared outwardly by curving the guide plate 44 slightly upwardly and the top plate I slightly downwardly at the right end of the machine, as at 44" and respectively.

, To stop the movement of a record through the guideway when the record reaches a substantially correct mounting position there is provided a stop member 50 which is bracketed on the left side of the carriage l4, as shown in Figures 1, 3 and 5. This member comprises a horizontally disposed forked portion. below the top plate I which terminates into a p u ty of stop fingers 5|. These fingers are circularly arranged about the axis of the spindle 35 and extended upwardly through laterally extending openings 52 in the top plate I to a level slightly above the guideway 41. To effect a maximum useful length of the guideway 41, the guide plate 44 is extended beyond the path defined by the stop fingers 5| in the travel of the carriage, the guide plate being, however, arranged to clear the stop fingers by the provision therein along its left-end portion of a notch 53 for each stop finger, as shown in Figure 1.

When a record has been mounted on the support 31a and positioned approximately centrally in relation to the spindle 35 by the record guiding and locating means above described, it is then finely centered and clamped or pressed down firmly against the support 310. by a centering and clamping device in the form of a pivoted arm structure (see Figures 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6). This arm structure comprises an arm 6| carried by the carriage l4 in a position radially overlying a mounted record. The means by which the arm 6| is supported by the carriage comprises a plate 62 secured at its forward end to the carriage M by screws 63 and having a pair of turned-up lugs 64 at its rearward end which project up above the top plate I through a laterally extending .opening 65 in the top plate. Carried by these lugs at their upper end portion is a rod 66 on which the'rearward end of the arm 6| is pivoted. The forward end of the arm 6| terminates in a portion 61 substantially in the shape of an inverted cup. Joure nalled within this cup portion 61 is a short spindle 6B which is received loosely at its upper end by a recess 59, as shown in Figure 6. In this recess, between the end thereof and the end of the spindle, there is provided aball 10 which forms a thrust bearing for the spindle. The bottom of the cup portion 61 is closed and a loose journal is formed for the spindle by a fianged nut H threaded on the cup portion. Pinned to the spindle 68 within the cup portion 61 is a stop collar 13 which serves by its abutment against the nut II to keep the spindle from: falling out of the cup portion 61 Below ii U the cup portion 61 on the spindle 68 there is provided a disk 14 of substantially the same di-- ameter as that of the record support 31a, and projecting below this disk is a lower end portion 68 of the spindle terminating in a cone 68". When the arm 6| is swung downwardly into a substantially horizontal position, the lower spindle portion 68 enters the central bore of the sleeve 31 and the disk M seats on the record support 310., the spindle portion and disk each passing through a top opening l5 in the guide plate 44.

The arm 6| is biased downwardly, by a torsion spring 76 at the hub of the arm on the pivot rod 66, and is automatically latched against downward movement when it is swung upwardly into a raised position. The latching means for the arm comprises a detent ll mounted, by way of pin and slot connections 18, to slide on the arm 5| longitudinally thereof, as shown in Figure i. This detent is biased rearwardly by a tension spring 19 connected between the detent and the arm. Along the path of the carriage I l behind the arm 5| there is mounted on the top plate i a bracket 80 provided with an overhanging portion forming a catch 8|. As the arm Si is swung upwardly the end 11' of the detent ll first impinges against the catch 8|, to move the detent forwardly, and thereafter the end ii is slid downwardly over the edge of the catch. When the end ll" of the detent clears the catch 8| it is snapped rearwardly under the catch by the spring l9 to latch the arm 6|. To unlatchthe arm 6| the detent is manually moved along the arm 6| so as to free the end 11' of the detent from the catch 8|. To facilitate such manipulation of the detent, and a manipulation of the arm 6| into upper and lower positions, the detent and arm are respectively provided with fingerpieces 84 and 85.

It will be seen that with the use of the record mounting means above described the mounting of a record on the machine is rendered very simple. For instance, the operator need first only to insert the record in the guideway 41 and to move it therethrough until it impinges against the stop fingers 5|, and then to unlatch the arm 5| so that it may swing downwardly in response to its biasing into a lower or operative position. As the record is moved through the guideway against the stop fingers 5| it is brought into a substantially central position in relation to the record-support spindle 35 as heretofore mentioned, and as the arm 6| is next swung downwardly into operative position the cone-shaped end portion 68 of the spindle E8 first enters the central hole in the record to finely center the record and then the disk M bears down against the hub portion of the record to hold the record firmly against displacement in relation to the record support. It will also be seen, aside from the record holding or clamping function of the arm structure 6i that when the arm 5| is in its operative position the lower end portion 68' of the spindle 58 obstructs the path of a record through the guideway and thus serves to prevent both the placing of a record into mounted position in relation to the record support and the removal of an already mounted record from the support. Such preventive function is uti lized in connection with apparatus hereinafter described to safeguard the machine against cer tain possible misoperations.

i The drive mechanism by way of which the motor M and the record support 31a are coupled together comprises a drive shaft 90 .journalled in a sleeve bearing 9i extending from left to right beneath the top plate and, held at its left end in the standard 5 (see Figures 6 and 7). Pinned. to the outer end of the shaft 90 is a pulley 82 which is coupled to the drive pulley 93 of the motor by a belt 94. The belt is kept taut by an idler pulley 95 journalle'd to a support lever 96 which is pivoted as at 9'! to the motor housing, this lever being biased, to cause the idler pulley to bear against the belt, by a tension spring 98 as shown in Figure 2. Pinned to the inner end of the drive shaft ill) is a drive wheel 99 provided with a frictional drive-surface layer which may, for example, be made of rubber. Movement of the disk 39 into and out of frictional engagement with the drive wheel 99 is controlled by a clutch C. This clutch comprises a pressure wheel I09, similar to the wheel as, which is caused to bear against the disk 39 at a point thereon directly opposite the driving or engaging surface of the drive wheel 99. The support means for the pressure wheel comprises a bracket E02 secured by screws M2 to the underside of the top plate and having left and right legs Hi3 and IE4 depending therefrom (of which the left leg is curved rearwardly and apertured to embrace the sleeve bearing 90 aforementioned and provide an additional support for this hearing, there being provided a set screw 9! for retaining the sleeve bearing to the leg). Journalled in the less I93 and IM is a rock shaft I05. On the right end of this rock shaft there is secured an arm In! on which there is rotatably mounted the pressure wheel I99, and on the left end of the rock shaft there is secured a control lover m9. The pressure wheel IE is biased to bear against the disk, to clutch the disk to the drive wheel 99, in response to an angular biasing of the rock shaft I caused by a tension spring i ii) connected between the bracket HM and lever I 19. The pressure wheel may however be moved at will by the control lever I09 away from the disk so as to remove the driving friction from between the disk and drive wheel and thereby unclutch the drive. In order that the disk 39 will wholly free itself of the drive wheel. when the pressure wheel is so moved, the disk is made of a thin flexible material and is provided with a slight upwardly directed bias. 5;

The use of a thin flexible disk biased in this way simplifies the construction of the drive coupling in that it permits the drive wheel to be mounted in stationary bearing, and the frictional disk to be mounted in a stationary bearing in relaf tion to the carriage I4, 1, e., simply directly clamped to the spindle 35. Also by making the frictional disk of a thin light material and employing merely a hub support for the record, the moment of inertia of the rotating record-support structure is made very small-and, as a conseouence, the tendency for slippage between the disk and drive wheel at the moment of starting record rotation is greatly reduced.

The construction of the friction drive hereinabove described is not claimed herein, since such construction forms the subject matter of my copending application Serial No. 420,621, filed November 27, 19-41, as a division of the present application and entitled Phonographs.

The means to feed the carriage I 4 along the support rods I2 and I3 in response to rotationof the record support spindle 35 comprises the aforedescribed feed sleeve 24 and a feed nut II2 which cooperates therewith, as shown in Figures fit) 1,2, 5 and 6. This feed nut iscarried bye, front to-back extending rock lever II 3 on an arm III thereof which extends rightwardly from the rearward end of the lever. The rock lever is pivoted at a point centrally thereof, as at H5, to a boss H6 projecting in from the standard 5. An angular biasing of the lever to urge the feed nut I I2 into engagement with the sleeve 24 is effected by a tension spring III connected between the lever and the standard 5. Movement of the rock lever M3 to disengage the feed nut from the sleeve 24 and thus render the carriage freely manually movable, as into its initial or starting position at the completion of a feeding movement thereof under the action of the sleeve 24, is effected through the medium of a control means hereinafter described.

It will be seen that when the disk 39 is rotated by the drive wheel 99, while the carriage I 4 is under the action of the feeding means just described, each revolution of the disk causes an advance in the travel of the carriage by a fixed amount and as a result the drive wheel engages the disk along a constantly pitched spiral line of progressively smaller radius. As the drive wheel engages the disk at smaller radial distances from the center of the disk, the rotational speed of the disk progressively increases and so also does the travelling speed of the carriage; the linear speed of the portionof the diskat its place of engagement with the drive wheel, however, remains constant throughout the traversal of the disk by the drive wheel.

Supported above the top plate I at the left end of the guideway 41, for coaction with a mounted record is a recording and reproducing translating means which by way of example is illustrated as comprising separate recording and reproducing units I 20 and I 2I (see Figures 1, 2, 5 and 6). These two units are carried by a horizontal plate 122 which is mounted on a pair of upright bosses I23 on the top plate I, the plate I22 being secured to these bosses by screws l'Zi. Thep'late I22 has rightwardly extending front and back portions I22a and I22b which form bases for the reproducing and recording units respectively. Secured as by welding to the bases I22a and I221) are respective upright posts I 25 to which the translating units I2I and I28 are respectively pivotally connected for up and down freedom of movement in relation to a supported record. In the case of the recording unit this pivotal connection is effected by a bail member I26 firmly secured along its body portion to the unit as by welding and pivoted to the post by means of cone pivots I21 which pass through the separate legs of the bail member to engage the post from opposite sides thereof. In the case of the reproducing unit I 2i, the pivotal connection affording the up and down freedom of movement to the unit is effected in' substantially the same manner as that of the recording unit-there being a bail member I28 connected to the unit and pivoted to the post I25 by means of cone pivots I2! which pass through the legs of the bail memher into engagement with opposite sides of the post. In thislatter case, however, the bail member I28 is not firmly connected to the, reproducing unit but is instead pivotally connected thereto about a vertical axis so as to afford also a lateral freedom of movement to the unit, this lateral freedom of movement being necessary to permit the reproducing unit tov freely track a spiral groove on a rotating record. The pivotal connection by which this lateral freedom of movement is provided comprises a pair of ears I29 turned back from the bail member I28 so as to straddle the end of the unit I2l, and pivots I30 extending vertically through the ears and engaging the unit at its upper and lower sides.

The recording and reproducing units herein diagrammatically shown may be of any suitable type-for example, of the piezo-electric typeand need not herein be described other than that the units are respectively provided with recording and reproducing styli I3I and I32 at the lower free end portions thereof, as'shown in Figure 2. These styli are mounted directly above the drive wheel 99 in order that the record groove in its movement past the styli will partake of the constant linear speed characterizing the movement of the engaged portion of the disk 35 past the drive wheel. As shown in Figure 1, each of the units I20 and I2l are tangentially disposed with respect to the point of contact of their respective styli with the record, by an angular positioning of the posts I25, such disposition serving to stabilize the action of the units in their coaction with a moving record. The portion of the moving record engaged by the styli is supported vertically by a table I34 on which the record is permitted to slide, as shown in Figure 6. This table is mounted on the top plate I and is provided with a highly polished top surface in order that the sliding friction between it and the bottom of the record will be greatly reduced. 3

The recording and reproducing units I25 and I2I are placeable into operative and inoperative conditions in relation to a mounted record merely by lowering and raising theunits into and out of a resting position wherein their styli engagethe record. This lowering and raising of the units is effected through a'slide I38 which is mounted on the plate I22 through pin and slot connections I39 for back and forth movement along the left sides of the translating units. Turned up from the slide along its right side is a vertical cam plate I45 and extending to the left from the translating units I20 and I2l are lift tabs I4l and I42 which directly overlie thetop edge of the cam plate I40. Thistop edge ,of the cam plate has a raised central dwell I IIIa, terminating in front and back downwardly inclined cam faces I401) and I400, as shown in Figure 2. When the slide I38 is in its most forwardposition the tab MI .is free of the dwell I 40a to permit the recording unit to engage the record whereas the tab I42 is engaged by the dwell to hold the reproducing unit in a raised or inoperative position; when the slide is in an intermediate position both tabs are engaged by the dwell and both recording and reproducing units are thus heldfrom the record in inoperative position; and when the slide is in its rearward position the tab MI is engaged by the dwell to hold the recording unit in inoperative position but the tab I42 is now free of the dwell to permit the reproducing unit to engage the record. The tab I42 on the reproducing unit is shaped in the form of an inverted V so that when the tab is engaged by the cam plate I45 to lift the unit from the record the unit will be centered with respect to its lateral freedom of movement.

The selective conditioning of the translating means, the engaging of the carriage feeding means, and the clutching ofthe drive mechanism are all manually controlled by a control lever I45. This lever, which is carried with the carriage I4, is rotatably mounted on the sleeve 20 between the carriage legs 14b and I 40, and pro-' jects angularly upwardly and forwardly from its hub through a laterally extending opening I in the front of the lower cabinet portion .as is hereinafter described. The separate elements controlled by the control lever I45 have a common coupling to the lever through the medium of the support rod I2 and it is for this reason that the rod I2 is journalled in the standards 5 and 6 as heretofore mentioned. A coupling of the control lever to the rod I2 is effected by a spline connection formed by a screw I41 which extends through the hub of the lever into slidable engagement with a slot I48 provided in the rod I2 longitudinally thereof. Each of the control functions of the lever I45 are achieved in accordance with the angular positioning of the rod I2. I'he coupling between the rod I2 and the feed nut M2, to control the engaging of the carriage-feeding means, comprises an upturned finger II3a on the rock lever H3 and a V-shaped cam I49 on the rod l2, which cam is part of a collar I58 secured to the rod at its left end portion (see Figures 2 and 5). Similarly, the coupling between the rod I2 and the pressure wheel I55, to control the clutching of the drive mechanism, comprises a camming surface I5I on the control lever I59 and a V-shaped cam I52 on the rod I2, which cam is part of a collar I53 secured to the rod I2 to the right of the collar I5I] (see Figures 2, 5 and 7). The coupling between the rod I2 and the slide I38, to control the conditioning of the translating units, comprises an upright arm I54 secured to the collar I53, a right angle arm I55 extending leftwardly from the slide I38 and then downwardly through an opening I55 in the topplate, and a link I5I interconnecting the arms I54 and I55 and pivotally connected thereto as at I58 and I59 respectivelyv (see Figures 1, 2 and 5) The operation of the control means of the foregoing paragraph is as follows: When the control lever I45 is in its central or inoperative positionthe position occupied by the lever in Figure 3- the cam I49 bears against the top of the finger H311 to hold the feed nut II2 out of engagement with the sleeve 24, the cam I52 engages the camming surface I5I to raise the pressure wheel I55 and thereby render the clutch C disengaged, and the slide I38 is held in its central position to render both the recording and reproducing units inoperative. When the control lever I45 is moved downwardly from its central or inoperative positionrinto a position hereinafter referred to as its recording position-the position occupied by the lever in Figure 2the cam I49 slides off the back side of the finger I I3a and the feed nut is engaged with the sleeve 24 in response to the biasing of the rock lever H3, the cam I52 slides rearwardly off from the camming surface I5I and the clutch C is engaged in response to the biasing of the lever I09, and the slide I38 is moved forwardly to permit the recording unit to move downwardly into engagement with the record in response to its own weight while retaining the reproducing unit in inoperative position. When, instead, the

control lever I45 is moved upwardly from its inoperative position into a position hereinafter referred to as its reproducing position, the cam I49 slides off the front side of the finger HM and the feed nut I I2 is again engaged with the sleeve 24, the cam I52 slides forwardly ofi from the camming surface I5I and the clutch C is again engaged, and the slide I38 is moved rearwardly to permit the reproducing unit to engage the record while yet retaining the recordingunit in inmechanism ZHL operative position. When the control lever I45 is returned from either of? its operative positions (1. e., its recording or reproducing positions.) to inoperative position it will be understood that. the reverse actions from those just described will take place.

In the course of an operation of recording dictation it is customary for a dictator to. intermittently interrupt the operation of the machine (i. e.,-temporarily stop. the record rotation) to i give him time to. formulate in his mind the further course of his thoughts. To permit such interruption in the operation of the machine, without disturbing any other. of its adjustments, there is. provided an independent actuating means for J the clutch C which is. in the form 0.1? a clutchaotuating mechanism iii-l. This mechanism is herein fractionally shown in Figure 2 as oi the construction disclosed in Langley Patent No. 1,380,486, issued June '7, 192.1, andentitled Con trolling device, to which patent reference may be had for a description of the mechanism in all its details, For the present it. is. sufiicient tosay that this actuating mechanism comprises a pair of stop and start. electromagnets 202 and 2123 respectively operating the pivoted armatures. 2M and 2%, which armatures are suitably interconnected so that each, when in unactuated. position, is effective to lock the other in its actuated position and. so. that each, when it is moved into actuated position, willv as a terminal result thereof cause the other to be. moved into its. unactuated position. One of the armatures, say 2-3.6, is coupled to. the lever 1.6.9. by a. link This link has at one end a pivotal connection 201' to the armature and has at. its other end a lost. motion or pin and slot connection 2-68. to. the lever H19, the lost motion connection being provided in order that the lever I09 may be operated to disengage the clutch. by the control lever [45, as heretofore described, without incurring any actuation of the This. mechanism is contained in a box 239. and isheld by serewsZ iii to. an inward extension 2H; on thestandard 5.

As appears in the abovementioned Langley patent, when a. circuit is established tocause current to flow through. the stop electromagnet. both armatures are swung in the direction of that electromagnet. to. disengage the clutch.

minal positions in that. movement, a switch is operated to break the circuit of thestop electromagnet. and to. prepare the circuit of the start electromagnet for energization. When the start electromagnet is. next. energized, the reverse action takes place, the clutch being engaged, the circuit through the start electromagnetbeing broken, and the circuit of the stop electromagnet being. prepared for energization.

There is provided, as a safeguard to. the styli of the translating means andto the record, a protective means which is adapted to prevent both record mounting and record removal while. either translating unit is in an operative or record- When the armatures have; substantially. reached their tor-- through a. lowering of the translating units upon the table I34, as atfa time when there is no. record mounted on the machine.

This protective meansis in the form of an interlock mechanism between the control lever Hi5 and arm 6! and comprises, as. shown in Figure 3, aslidably mounted bar I655 controlled in its movement by the lever I45 and a tail piece NE on the arm 6! which coacts. with this bar. The bar 665 extends from front to back below the top. plate I and has a pivotal connection, at its front end, as at it}, to an arm i168 extending rearwardly from the control lever, there being integrally formed with the hub of the controlllever 45 a sectorshaped web 189. from which the arm-5.68 extends, this. web. being provided for reasons which will hereinafter be explained. The rearward end portion of the bar 65 has a pin and slot connection il to the leftward one of the lugs to provide a slidable mounting for th bar. The tail piece E56 projects down from the hub of the arm 61' between the lugs 64 and then extends forwardly beneath the top plate. On the end pcrtion'of the tail piece there is provided a cross pin Ill which directly underlies a flat horizontal edge H2 at. the bottom of the bar I65. This edge is adapted to obstruct the pin I'H against upward movement and to thereby lock the arm 6| in its lower or operative position. The edge H2 is however interrupted intermediately thereof by an upwardly extending. sl'ot I13 inthe bar, which is adapted to permit, as when theslot is positioned directly above the pin I'M, an upward swinging of the arm 6|. 1

The slot n3 is positioned on the bar mm directly overliethe pin Hi when the control lever Hi5 is in. inoperative position; Thuswhen the; control lever is in inoperative position to retain bothtranslating units. 12!] and I2? inin operative. position the arm 6| may be raised to permit. record removal and recordremounting When'the arm BI is so. raised the control lever ME becomes locked in inoperative position through the engagement of the pin ill with the slot H3,- this locking of the control lever being adapted to prevent. any accidental lower ing of either translating unit on. the table 134- when there is no. record mounted on the ma chine. When the arm iiluhas however been lowered to operative position;: as in the' completion of record rnounting,land' the control lever 'l-tii shifted. into recording'or reproducing position the bar I65- is moved forwardly, or rearwardly as the case may be, tobring portions of the'edge H2 over the pin Ill, and to therebylock the arm at in lowered position, this locking of the arm 6| being adapted to prevent reeord change while either translating .unit is 'in a record engageableposition. :ii

The. lower cabinet. portion 3 heretofore men tioned' has; its front. wall terminating along the. top thereof into an inwardly curved arcirate' pore;- tion I (see Figures. 1, 2 and 3;) Thisarcuata portion, except for the ends. thereoiwhichi'arep,

integral with the. cabinet portion 3;, comprises a removable. wall section I81. The wallsectiolnr I81 is provided with an upturned-hange-i811: along the top thereof which is secured by screws: I83 t the front ed e of. the top plat ise lfiia es2. and 5 a d. with a; tu ned. a k la-pa:

le alone the lower edgethereof; which is adapted;

to seat upon. a flan e. 85 umedback from the;

top edge. of the front wall of the lower cabinet; portion (see Figure 2' his wall. se tion; tlz-i it will. be seen-forms, themeams by: Way: oil.

which the phonograph mechanism is supported at its front by the lower cabinet portion asfwas heretofore mentioned.

In the wall section IBI there is provided the opening I46 through which the control lever M passes. This opening is made relatively long so that the wall section will not obstruct the travelling movement of the carriage M. The opening is, however, effectively closed by an arcuate shield I86. which is carried by the aforementioned sector-shaped, web I59 and by a similarly shaped web I81 that is positioned to the right of the web I69 and integrally formed with the control lever, as shown in Figures 3 and 9. The shield is secured to thesewebs by means of brackets I88 which are welded to the shield and fastened to the webs. by screws I89.

A lefthand portion of the flange l82,'which is turned up from the wall section 18! is extended to provide a vertical wall l9l1, as shown in Figure 5a. On the front face of this wall section there is provided asuitable holder It! for an index slip, and bracketed to. the carriage M, at I 92 as shown in Figures 1 and 3, is an arm [$3 extendingleftwardly from ,thecarriage and then terminating into. an upturned finger I9 3 which extends'through a slit I95 in the Wall section [8! to overlie the-index slip holder 19!. This finger is adapted to serve as a guide for a pencil or the like, by means of which explanatory marks or annotations may be made on the index slip, during the course of a recording operation, as with respect to selected portions of recorded matter.

Over the top'of the machine there is provided a cover [96. This cover fits the top edge of the rearward and left side walls of the lower cabinet portion 3 and forms a vertical extension of these side walls of the cabinet, as shown in Figures 2 and 5, there being provided inwardly turned flanges along the left side walls of the cover and lower cabinet portion, as at I91 in Figure 5, to form a good seat for the cover. The front of the cover is partially cut away in its left half portion, at I98, to fit the wall I90, as is shown in Figure 5a. In the right half of the cover at the front, top and right sides thereof, as is shown in Figures 5a and 5b, there is provided an opening I99 which is arranged to expose the record mounting means and the mouth of the record guideway 41. As appears in Figure 5, the top edge of the right wall of the lower cabinet portion is provided with an inwardly turned flange 2%; the rearward portion of this flange serves as a seat for the cover whereas the forward portion forms with the curved portion 1' of the top plate an outward extension of the mouth 41' of the record guideway.

Although I have herein shown and described my invention in terms of one embodiment thereof, it will be understood that this embodiment is subject to many changes and modifications without departure from the scope of my invention which I endeavor to express according to the following claims.

I claim:

, 1. In a phonograph comprising a support onto and from which a record may be mounted and removed, and a translating means .adapted to cooperate with a'record mounted on said support: the combination of a control means associated with said translating means and movable into operative and inoperative positions to place the translating means into and out of operative relationship with a mounted record; a rotatably held member movably mounted for movement be tween an inoperative position and an operative position wherein the member bears against a mounted record to hold the same in mounted position on said support; and an interlock between said control means and said member causing either one to be locked upon the placing of the other into a predetermined one of its posi-,

tions.

2. In a phonograph comprising a record support and a translating device placeable into operative and inoperative conditions in relation to P a record mounted on said support: the combination of a control means associated with said device and movable into operative and inoperative positions to place the device into its respective conditions; a rotatably held member arranged to bearagainst a mounted record and movably mounted for movement into an ineffective position and into a bearing position wherein the member is effective both to obstruct a mounting of a record on said support and. to hold an already mounted record on the support; and an interlock between said control means and said bearing member and effective when the former is in operative position to lock the latter in its said bearing position, and when the latter is out of bearing position to lock the former in operative position.

3. In a phonograph comprising a record support and a translating device placeable into operative and inoperative conditions in relation to a record mounted on said support: the combination of a control means associated with said device and movable into operative and inoperative positions to place the device into its respective conditions; a movably mounted member adapted for independent manipulation into an ineffective position andinto an effective position wherein the member is immediately adjacent to a mounted record to prevent any substantial movement of the record from said support; and an interlock between said control means and said member permitting movement of each independently of the other and adapted to lock the control means in inoperative position when the member is in ineifective position and to lock the member in effective position when the control means is in operative position.

4. In a phonograph comprising a support onto and from which a record may be mounted and removed: the combination of a translating device and control means associated therewith movable into operative and inoperative positions to place the device into operative and inoperative conditions in relation to a mounted record; a movably mounted member adapted for independent manipulation into an ineffective position and an effective position wherein the member is adapted to bear against a mounted record to obstruct both the mounting and removal of a record in relation to said support; and an interlock between said member and said control means permitting each to be moved independently of the other and effective to cause either one to be locked upon placing the other into a predetermined one of its positions.

5. In a phonograph comprising a rotatably mounted support onto and from which a record may be mounted and removed: the combination of a translating device and a control member oneratively associated therewith and movable to adjust the device into operative and inoperative conditions. in relation to a record mounted on aid S DDQ THI rQt table. means; at. m mber m vably supporting said rotatable means and biased to cause the rotatable means to bear axially against a mounted record whereby to hold the record on said support; and means, operatively connecting said control member with said supporting member, for causing either member to inoperative positions to place the device into and out of operative relation with th record; and an interloclrbetween said control means and said obstructing means permitting independent manipulation of said obstructing means While said control means is in inoperative position and of said control means only when said obstructing means, is in operative position and adapted to loclr said obstructing means in operative position when said control means is in operative position and to lock said control means in inoperative position when said obstructing means is in an inoperative position,..

7. In a phono raph having a turntable onto and from which a record is to be mounted, and, removed, and, a carriage movably supporting said turntable for linear travellingmovement: the combination or stationary guide means associated with said turntable and forminga narrow guideway across the face of and in line with the direction of travel ofthe turntable, said guideway being open-ended at one side of the: turntable for receiving and guiding a disk record onto the turntable; and means, comprising a, stop member fixedly held to said carriage and extending into said guideway at the. other side of the. turntable, for limiting the passage of a record into said guideway to a substantially central position relative to the turntable irrespective of the position occupied by the turntable in its range of travelling movement.

8'. In a phonograph comprising a, record support and a translating device placeable into operative and inoperative conditions in relation to a record mounted on said support: the combination of a control means associated with said device and movable into operative and inoperative positions to place the device into its respective conditions; a movably mounted member adapted for independent manipulation into an ineffective position and into an effective position wherein the member is immediately adjacent to a mounted record to prevent any substantial movement of the record from said support; and means intercoupling said control means. and said member and permitting movement of either independently of the other for locking the control means in inoperative position when the member. is in ineffective position.

ORVILLE M; DUNN'ING! CERTIFI GATE OF C ORREC'IION Patent No. 2,5lpl,705. February 15, 19M.

ORVIILE m. DUNNINIG.

It is hereby certified that errpr appears in the printed speci fieauen of the above numbered, patent requiring correction as follows; PageT, second column, line 29-50, claim 2, for the wor tive; and that'the said Letters Patent shpuld be readwith this correction therein that the same may conferm to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 15th da of August, A. D, 19%.

Leslie Frazer (Seal) Acting Commissionetb of Patents.

d "operative" read -inopera 

